/5^3 


s 

FOREIGN  CHRISTIAN  MISSIONARY  SOCIETY  SERIES. 

No.  XXVI. 


TWENTY-FIVE  YEARS 


OF  THE 


Foreign  Christian  ]VIissionary  Society. 

An  Historical  Address, 

read  before  the  Kansas  City  Convention,  October  17,  1900, 
By  McBEAN. 


Twenty-five  years  ago  the  Foreign  Mission¬ 
ary  Society  was  organized.  At  that  time  we 
did  not  have  in  the  wide  field  destitute  of  the 
gospel  a  single  herald  of  the  cross.  Now  we 
are  at  work  on  four  continents  and  in  eleven 
different  countries.  We  are  represented  on 
all  the  continents  save  one.  We  have  ex¬ 
panded  until  we  have  become  a  world-power. 
The  growth  of  the  Society  has  far  exceeded 
all  that  its  founders  dared  to  ask  or  think. 
Men  and  women  of  ability  and  culture  and 
consecration  have  been  raised  up  for  the  ser¬ 
vice  ;  the  funds  necessary  for  their  support 
have  been  received;  homes,  chapels,  schools, 
liospitals,  dispensaries,  orphanages  and  asy¬ 
lums  have  been  built;  the  gospel  has  been 
preached  far  and  near.  At  the  same  time 
every  other  missionary  enterprise  among  us 
has  been  marvelously  prospered.  The  Lord 
has  dealt  l)ountifully  with  us,  and  we  bless 
and  praise  His  name. 


The  origin  of  the  Foreign  Society  was  in 
this  way :  At  the  Cincinnati  Convention  in 
1874  several  meetings  were  held  in  the  inter¬ 
est  of  world-wide  missions.  Owing  to  the 
lack  of  time  no  satisfactory  conclusions  were 
reached.  A  committee  was  appointed  to  take 
the  subject  under  advisement  for  a  year.  At 
the  next  convention  the  friends  of  this  cause 
met  in  the  basement  of  the  First  Christian 
Church  in  Louisville,  Ky.,  to  hear  the  com¬ 
mittee’s  report.  It  was  an  impressive  meet¬ 
ing.  There  was  a  sense  of  the  Divine  Pres¬ 
ence,  a  conviction  that  what  was  being  done 
was  in  harmony  with  the  purpose  of  God  in 
the  ages.  It  Avas  unanimously  decided  to  form 
a  society  to  preach  the  gospel  in  foreign 
lands.  A  constitution  was  adopted  and  offi¬ 
cers  elected.  Isaac  Errett  was  chosen  Pres- 

♦ 

ident;  W.  T.  Moore,  Jacob  Burnet  and  J.  >S. 
Lamar,  Vice-Presidents;  Robert  Moffett, 
Corresponding  Secretary;  B.  B.  Tyler,  Re¬ 
cording  Secretary;  and  W.  S.  Dickinson, 
Treasurer.  The  men  who  were  held  responsi¬ 
ble  for  the  management  and  maintenance  of 
the  new  Society  were  determined  to  use  all 
their  time  and  energy  in  prosecuting  the 
work,  and  none  at  all  in  controversy  about 
plans.  They  were  not  wedded  to  any  special 
plan,  nor  were  they  disposed  to  interfere  with 
those  who  preferred  to  work  in  some  other 
way.  If  better  plans  were  proposed  tlipy 
were  ready  to  adopt  them  promptly  and  grate¬ 
fully;  but  they  were  weary  of  vain  jangling 
about  plans  while  nothing  was  being  done, 
and  while  no  l)etter  plans  were  even  sug¬ 
gested.  To  all  objections  the  Society  has 


pointed  to  the  workers  on  the  fields,  to  the 
churches  gathered,  to  tlie  children  rescued 
and  taught,  to  the  sick  that  have  l^een  healed, 
and  then  without  a  single  word  of  arguinent 
has  sought  to  do  the  next  thing. 

Tlie  Society  began  work  on  a  modest  scale. 
It  did  not  expect  to  enlist  a  large  constituency 
I  or  to  secure  much  money.  Ten  years  ela])sed 
])efore  it  had  a  secretary  giving  his  whole 
time  to  its  interests.  While  minister  of  the 
Central  Christian  Church,  W.  T.  Moore  served 
the  Society  for  two  years  ;  he  received  no  pay 
I  for  his  services.  His  successor  had  other  l3us- 
j  iness  and  other  sources  of  income,  and  was 
paid  only  for  the  portion  of  time  he  gave  to 
the  Society.  On  his  removal  to  the  West  the 
I  Committee  decided  to  pay  his  successor  only 
li  five  hundred  dollars.  For  ten  years  the  Exec- 
[(  utive  Comniittee  held  its  meetings  in  one  of 
|i  the  store-rooms  of  the  Standard  Publishing 
’  Company.  No  rent  was  paid.  WindoAvs  and 
))oxes  served  as  chairs.  The  clerk  used  his 
knee  as  a  desk.  All  work  Avas  done  at  home. 
Circulars  Avere  printed  l^y  hand.  The  policy 
Avas  extremely  conservatiA^e. 

Tliough  the  Foreign  Society  AA^as  organized 
to  preach  Christ  Avhere  He  had  not  been, 
named,  for  seven  years  all  its  A\u)rk  aa^is  done 
among  ])eoples  that  are  nominally  Christian. 
That  Avas  OAAung  mainly  to  the  fact  that  there 
Avere  no  men  ready  for  service  in  the  regions 
))eyond.  Tlie  night  the  Society  Avas  organ¬ 
ized  Henry  S.  Earl  signified  his  purpose  to 
labor  in  Ifurope.  The  President  took  him 
I  aside  and  begged  him  to  AU)lunteer  for  some 
one  of  tlie  great  heathen  fields.  For  reasons 


—  4  — 


that  seemed  sufficient  to  liimself  he  declined 
to  do  so.  The  Committee  looked  out  men  of 
good  report,  full  of  the  Holy  Spirit  and  of 
faith,  and  besought  them  to  devote  their  lives 
to  foreign  missionary  work.  Several  signified 
their  willingness,  but  when  the  time  for  their 
departure  drew  near  they  were  confronted  witli 
obstacles  that  appeared  insurmountal^le. 
Early  in  the  history  of  the  Society,  Timothy 
Coop  began  to  attend  the  conventions.  He 
offered  to  give  $5,000  if  three  men  were  sent 
to  preach  to  his  countrymen.  He  wais  told 
that  it  was  no  part  of  the  plan  of  the  Society 
to  do  missionary  work  in  England  or  to  ex¬ 
tend  its  forces  in  that  country.  Neverthe¬ 
less,  on  account  of  his  importunate  appeals 
and  his  handsome  contributions,  three  men 
were  sent.  Later  on  other  men  followed.  It 
was  felt  that  the  churches  planted  would  l)e 
self-sustaining  in  from  one  to  four  years, 
and  that  then  the  Society  would  be  free 
to  more  promptly  and  extensively  devote 
its  means,  according  to  the  original  purpose, 
to  the  needy  fields  of  Asia  and  Africa.  At 
the  present  time  the  gospel  is  preached  l)y 
our  representatives  at  fifteen  ])oints  in  En- 
gdand.  Thus,  W.  Durban  preaches  at  Horn¬ 
sey,  E.  M.  Todd  at  the  West  London  Taber¬ 
nacle,  Leslie  W.  Morgan  at  Southampton, 
Eli  Brearley  at  Birkenhead,  J.  H.  Bicknell  at 
Ihverpool,  Alfred  Johnson  at  Southport,  T. 
H.  Bates  at  Cheltenham,  E.  H.  Spring  at 
Gloucester,  J  .  H.  Versey  at  Lancaster,  George 
Raj)kin  at  Margate,  Richard  Dobson  at  Salt- 
ney.  The  present  membership  is  2,800  ;  the 
pupils  in  the  Sunday-schools  number  2,482. 


—  5  — 


Tli(‘  socioty  owns  ])r()porty  wortli  $88,000. 
Th('  Cliristian  Coinnioiiwoalth  is  one  of  tlie 
fruits  of  tliat  mission.  Tliat  ])a|)er  is  ably 
edited  and  widely  read.  J.  and  F.  Coop  are  a 
tower  of  strength  to  the  work  eyerywliere. 
Eight  missionaries  haye  gone  out  from  tliat 
country  to  India  and  China,  and  as  many 
more  to  the  West  Indies.  A  number  of  strong 
men  haye  come  to  lalior  in  the  United  States. 

Soon  after  the  organization  of  the  Society, 
Dr.  A.  Hoick  was  asked  to  return  to  Denmark 
to  o])en  a  mission  in  Copenhagen.  The  next 
year,  Jules  and  iVnnie  De  Laiinay  were  sent 
to  Paris.  In  the  year  1879,  G.  N.  Sliishma- 
nian  and  wife  were  sent  to  Constantino])le  to 
preach  to  the  Armenians.  The  Society  has 
two  churches  in  Co])enhagen  ;  R.  P.  Anderson 
lias  charge  of  one,  and  0.  C.  Mikkelsen  of 
the  other.  The  First  Church  has  a  building 
worth  $25,000.  There  are  two  churches  in 
Sweden ;  one  in  Malmo,  and  tlie  other  in 
Ramloso.  I.  P.  Lillienstein  preaches  for 
both.  There  are  twenty  churclies  in  Norway. 
Ten  of  these  own  tlieir  own  buildings.  These 
are  neither  spacious  nor  siilendid,  but  they 
are  comfortable  and  conyenient.  Julius 
Cramer  preaclies  in  Frederickshald.  Tlie 
great  need  of  these  churches  is  that  of  well- 
equi})ped  men  to  seiwe  as  ministers.  Dr. 
Hoick  is  in  delicate  health,  and  cannot  do 
what  he  once  did.  For  ten  years  he  has  re- 
ceiyed  no  salary.  Not  only  so,  but  he  giyes 
munificently  each  year  to  help  churches  that 
are  weak  and  to  ])lant  new  ones  in  destitute 
places.  E.  W.  Pease  has  recently  gone  to 
Norway  to  assist  in  the  \vork. 


The  three  ])riiicipal  points  at  which  we  are 
doing  work  in  Turkey  are  Constantinople, 
Smyrna  and  Tocat.  Constantinople  is  a  city 
of  a  million  people.  There  G.  N.  Shishma- 
nian  and  A.  L.  Chapman,  and  their  families, 
live  and  labor.  The  gospel  is  preached  in 
that  city  and  in  the  country  adjacent,  and 
schools  are  taught.  Mr.  Shishmanian  has 
evangelized  in  most  parts  of  the  empire.  He 
has  gone  as  far  south  as  Syria,  and  as  far  east 
as  the  Lake  of  Van.  His  writings  have  been 
widely  read  by  Armenians.  John  Johnson 
and  family  live  in  Smyrna.  The  Isaac  Er- 
rett  Memorial  Chapel  was  built  in  that  city. 
Dr.  Garabed  Kevorkian  has  his  home  in  To¬ 
cat.  Several  churches  look  to  him  for  coun¬ 
sel  and  aid.  There  are  in  all  fourteen  out- 
stations  where  the  gospel  is  preached  regu¬ 
larly  and  the  ordinances  observed.  About 
one  thousand  have  l)een  baptized.  The  mem¬ 
bership  at  present  numbers  529;  the  children 
in  the  Sunday-schools,  585;  in  the  day 
schools,  855.  If  it  were  not  for  the  hostility 
of  the  government,  Turkey  would  be  one  of 
the  most  fruitful  mission  fields  on  the  globe. 

The  Paris  Mission  was  discontinued  in 
1887,  because  no  suital)le  man  could  be  found 
to  lead  in  it. 

We  entered  India  in  1882.  The  first  grou]) 
of  missionaries  consisted  of  G.  L.  Wharton 
and  Albert  Norton,  and  their  familieSj  and 
four  young  ladies  from  the  Woman’s  Board. 
After  examining  the  held,  they  settled  in  the 
Central  Provinces.  The  agents  of  the  Societv 
are  doing  work  at  four  stations  and  at  several 
out-stations.  The  stations  are:  Hurda,  a 


i 


town  417  miles  east  from  Bombay;  Bilaspiir, 
a  town  508  miles  west  from  Calcutta ;  Mun- 
geli,  a  town  81  miles  distant  from  Bilaspur: 
and  Damoh,  a  town  6(3  miles  from  Jubbalpur. 
The  work  has  five  branches;  the  evangelis¬ 
tic,  the  medical,  the  educational,  the  literary, 
and  the  benevolent.  At  Hurda  the  Society 
owns  three  homes,  two  schools,  a  chapel,  a 
hospital,  a  dispensary,  and  a  le})er  asylum. 
For  seventeen  years  G.  L.  AFharton  had 
charge  of  the  evangelistic  department.  He 
jireached  and  trained  a  class  of  preachers. 
Dr.  C.  C.  Drummond  has  charge  of  the  med¬ 
ical  work.  G.  W.  Coffman  superintends  the 
education  of  the  boys ;  Miss  Mildred  Frank¬ 
lin  that  of  the  girls.  Miss  Mary  Thompson 
works  among  the  women  of  Hurda  and  the 
country  round  about.  Dr.  John  Panna  has 
the  oversight  of  the  work  in  Charwa  and 
Timarni.  He  preaches  the  gospel  and  heals 
the  sick  and  teaches  the  young.  In  Septem- 
lier,  G.  AV.  Brown  and  family  sailed  for  In¬ 
dia.  For  a  time  he  will  make  Hurda  his 
home.  It  is  expected  that  he  will  superin¬ 
tend  the  educational  work  in  India.  Very 
recently,  G.  L.  Wharton  resigned,  owing  to 
the  failure  of  Mrs.  Wharton’s  health. 

M.  D.  Adams  has  charge  of  the  work  at 
Bilaspur.  He  teaches  and  preaches.  Ernest 
W.  Gordon  teaches  in  the  boys’  school.  Mrs. 
Adams  has  charge  of  the  book-store,  and 
teaches  the  boys  to  sing,  and  visits  the  women 
in  their  homes  as  she  is  able.  The  Society 
owns  a  home  and  a  school-chapel  in  Bilaspur. 
E.  M.  and  Dr.  Anna  M.  D.  Gordon  are  at 
Mungeli.  The  Society  owns  a  home,  a  school, 


8  — 


a  cliapel,  a  liospital,  a  dispensary,  and  a 
lej^er  asylum  in  ^[ungeli.  Dr.  Gordon  has 
estaldished  two  dispensaries  ten  and  twelve 
miles  away.  Sunday-schools  have  been  or¬ 
ganized  in  several  villages. 

In  Damoh  the  Society  has  two  homes,  an 
or})hanage,  a  workshop  and  a  school.  John 
G.  McGavran  gives  his  time  to  the  evan¬ 
gelistic  work.  A  consideral)le  part  of  every 
year  is  spent  in  touring.  He  hopes  within  a 
year  to  o])en  twenty  or  more  primary  schools 
in  the  villages.  W.  E.  Rambo  and  David 
Riocli  give  attention  to  the  boys  in  the  or- 
])hanage.  These  boys  number  165.  Those 
that  are  old  enough  are  being  taught  trades. 
Some  are  learning  to  be  car])enters,  some  to 
be  blacksmiths,  some  to  be  tailors,  others  to 
be  farmers  and  gardeners.  They  are  being 
taught  the  use  of  American  tools  and  im- 
])roved  methods  of  agriculture.  Miss  Jose])ha 
Franklin  teaches  them  in  the  day  school. 
They  are  taught  the  common  branches  and 
the  Scriptures.  These  boys  are  taught  or¬ 
der,  industry,  cleanliness,  honesty,  sobriety, 
purity,  economy  and  improvement  in  worldly 
circumstances.  Mrs.  Rambo  looks  after  their 
clothing.  Dr.  Mary  T.  McGavran  cares  for 
their  health.  In  addition,  she  has  a  daily 
clinic  for  the  sick  in  that  region.  Miss 
Stella  Franklin  presses  the  claims  of  the 
gospel  home  to  the  hearts  aiid  consciences  of 
all  with  whom  she  has  to  do.  F.  E.  Stubbin 
oversees  the  erection  of  new  buildings  and 
the  repairs  on  old  ones.  Miss  M.  L.  Clark 
has  gone  out  from  England  to  assist  in  the 
.orphanage.  The  wives  of  the  missionaries 


—  D 


build  up  Christian  homes,  one  of  the  most 
effective  of  all  evangelistic  agencies.  They 
visit  in  the  zenanas  and  do  what  they  can  to 
lead  the  women  to  Christ  and  to  teach  the 
children  all  that  ]')ertains  to  life  and  godli¬ 
ness.  During  the  famine  thousand  of  meals 
were  given  out.  Grain  was  sold  for  food  and 
for  seed  at  reasonal:)le  prices  and  given  away 
freely  to  those  unable  to  buy.  So  were  bread, 
bamboos,  leather,  wood,  clothing  and  other 
necessaries  of  life.  In  India,  the  converts 
number  828;  the  children  in  the  Sunday- 
schools,  1,881  ;  the  children  in  the  day 
scdiools,  515 :  the  people  treated  in  the  hos¬ 
pitals  and  dispensaries,  88,4()(3. 

Mm  began  work  iii  Japan  in  1888.  In  Sep¬ 
tember  of  that  year,  George  T.  Smith  and  C. 
E.  Garst,  and  their  families,  sailed  from  San 
Francisco  for  Yokohama.  They  left  the 
crowded  Foreign  Concessions  for  the  interior. 
Their  exam])le  did  much  to  facilitate  the 
wider  dispersion  of  the  missionaries  that 
s])eedily  followed.  Our  missionaries  live  now 
in  Tokio,  Osaka,  Sendai  and  Akita.  In  addi¬ 
tion  to  these  four  main  stations,  work  is  car¬ 
ried  on  at  Fukushima,  Innai,  Arakawa, 
Shizuoka,  Hon  jo,  Akozu  and  Shonai.  H.  H. 
Guy,  F*.  E.  Hagin  and  C.  S.  tVeaver,  and 
their  families,  P.  A.  Davev,  Miss  Johnson, 
M  iss  Oldham,  Miss  Rioch  and  Miss  tVirick 
are  stationed  in  Tokio;  E.  S.  Stevens  and 
Dr,  Nina  A.  Stevens,  in  Akita;  M.  B.  Mad¬ 
den  and  family  and  Miss  Carme  Hostetter, 
in  Sendai;  and  R.  L.  Pruett  and  family  and 
Miss  Bertha  Clawson,  in  Osaka.  The  gospel 
is  i)reach9d  regularly  at  forty-one  places,  and 


10  — 


at  a  greater  number  irregularly.  In  the 
thirteen  organized  churches,  there  are  784 
members;  in  the  twelve  Sunday-schools, 
there  are  788  pupils;  and  in  the  day  schools, 
150.  The  Society  owns  eight  chapels,  eight 
homes  and  two  school  buildings  in  the  Sun¬ 
rise  Kingdom. 

China  was  entered  three  years  after  Japan. 
Dr.  W.  E.  Macklin  was  the  founder  of  that 
mission.  As  soon  as  he  was  able  to  make 
his  wants  known  in  Chinese,  he  established 
himself  in  Nankin  and  called  for  reinforce¬ 
ments.  He  was  soon  joined  by  two  young 
men  from  London  and  by  E.  T.  Williams 
and  F.  E.  Meigs  and  their  wives  and  chil¬ 
dren.  The  principal  places  in  China  in 
which  the  Society  is  at  work  are  Nankin, 
Shanghai,  Chu  Cheo,  Wuhu  and  Lu  Cheo  Fu. 
The  out-stations  are  as  follows  :  Tsungming, 
Tung  Chow,  Luhoh,  Pukeo,  Yo  Ho  Tsz,  Tseu 
Saw,  Yang  Shing  Saw  and  Yang  King.  Dr.  W. 
E.  Macklin,  F.  E.  Meigs  and  Frank  Garrett 
and  their  families,  Mrs.  Ella  C.  F.  Saw,  Miss 
Emma  Lyon,  Dr.  Daisy  Macklin  and  Miss 
Mary  Kelly  live  in  Nankin.  The  gospel  is 
preached  in  the  chapels  and  dispensaries,  in 
tea-houses,  in  temples,  on  the  streets.  Each 
year  20,000  patients  are  treated.  Men  and 
women  suffering  from  blindness,  cholera, 
consum]ffion,  syphilis,  rheumatism  and  other 
serious  diseases  throng  the  physicians  seek¬ 
ing  health.  In  the  college,  fifty  boys  are 
being  prepared  for  lives  of  usefulness  and 
noI)leness.  A  scliool  has  been  opened  for 
girls.  James  Ware  and  W.  P.  Bentley  and 
their  families  have  their  homes  in  Shanghai. 


— 11  — 


t 


They  preach  in  season  and  out  of  season; 

>  they  teach;  they  disseminate  Christian  litera¬ 
ture.  The  Christian  Institute  is  a  hive  of 
busy  workers.  In  it  children  are  being 
I  taught,  evangelists  and  teachers  and  colpor- 
!  teurs  and  Bible-wonien  are  trained  for  ser- 
i  vice.  W.  R.  Hunt  and  Dr.  E.  I.  Osgood  and 
j  their  families  are  in  Chu  Cheo.  In  that  dis- 
'  trict  there  are  five  million  souls.  Since  the 
beginning  of  the  year,  the  church  has  had  a 
revival.  Eighty-five  souls  have  been  added 
to  the  saved.  Wuhu  is  an  important  city 
fifty  miles  up  the  river  from  Nankin.  There 
C.  E.  Holland  and  family  and  Miss  Effie  D. 
Kellar  are  at  work.  Lu  Cheo  Fu  is  150  miles 
west  from  Wuhu.  There  T.  J.  Arnold  and 
C.  B.  Titus  and  their  families  and  Dr.  James 
Butchart  are  stationed.  The  believers  con¬ 
nected  with  our  mission  in  China  number 
565;  the  children  in  the  day  schools,  224; 
the  children  in  the  Sundav-schools,  284.  The 
Society  has  bought  or  built  eight  homes,  five 
chapels  and  four  schools. 

Three  years  ago  last  March  two  men  sailed 
out  of  Boston  for  the  Congo  country.  After 
much  wandering  they  found  a  suitable  place 
for  a  mission.  The  station  they  occupied  is 
named  Bolengi.  It  is  seven  hundred  miles 
from  the  mouth  of  the  river  and  is  exactly 
on  the  Equator.  The  Baptists  agreed  to  va¬ 
cate  that  part  of  the  continent  and  kindly 
I  sold  us  their  buildings  for  less  than  half  they 
cost.  E.  E.  Faris  and  Dr.  Royal  J.  Dye  and 
family  are  now  living  there.  Frank  T.  Lea 
and  wife,  now  in  Portuguese  territory,  expect 
I  to  join  them  soon.  Already  they  have 

i 


12 


gathered  a  school  of  182  pupils.  There  is  a 
daily  clinic  and  large  nunibers  are  being 
treated.  Regular  services  are  held  at  the 
station,  and  the  Gospel  is  preached  along  the 
rivers.  The  people  are  simple,  untutored 
savages.  They  have  no  written  grammar. 
They  have  no  words  for  believe,  or  repent,  or 
confess.  To  express  Christian  thoughts  new 
words  must  be  formed  or  old  ones  be  cleansed 
and  filled  with  new  meaning. 

Immediately  after  the  last  convention,  L. 
C.  McPherson  and  Melvin  Menges  and  their 
families  sailed  for  Havana,  Cuba.  While 
giving  much  of  their  time  to  the  study  of  the 
language,  they  avail  themselves  of  every  op¬ 
portunity  for  ])reaching  to  soldiers  and  to 
civilians  who  understand  English.  They 
have  baptized  fifteen ;  the  Sunday-school  is 
well-attended.  The  Cubans  have  a  form  of 
Christianit}^,  but  little  of  its  power.  Many 
Cubans  need  the  Gospel  as  much  as  do  the 
Hottentots.  In  June  of  the  current  year 
Abram  E.  Cory  and  family  left  for  the 
Hawaiian  Islands.  They  were  most  cordially 
received  by  the  brethren  there.  In  connec¬ 
tion  with  them  and  the  committee  they  are 
])lanning  their  life  work.  This  work  in 
Honolulu  was  begun  at  the  instance  and  at 
the  expense  of  Lathrop  Cooley. 

Since  the  organization  of  the  Society  102 
missionaries  have  been  sent  out  or  engaged 
on  the  fields.  The  whole  number  now  at 
work  is  257.  Of  these  111  are  missionaries, 
and  146  are  evangelists,  teachers  and  helpers. 
Tlie  stations  and  out-stations  number  118. 
Seventy-nine  churches  have  been  organized. 


—  18 


The  present  nieml)ership  in  all  the  churches 
is  5,  742.  Many  have  died  and  moved  away  ; 
some  have  gone  back  to  the  weak  and  beggarly 
elements  which  they  once  renounced.  The 
cliildren  under  instruction  in  the  Sunday- 
schools  number  0,871;  in  the  day-schools, 
1 ,406.  Some  of  these  are  being  taught  and 
trained  to  assist  the  work.  Great  numbers  of 
tracts  and  gospels  have  been  sold  and  dis¬ 
tributed.  The  patients  treated  each  year 
number  about  50,000. 

Of  the  missionaries  a  number  have  died  in 
liarness.  These  were  M.  D.  Todd,  Mrs. 
Mollie  B.  Moore,  Mrs.  A.  Hoick,  Miss  Sue 
Ro])inson,  Miss  Hattie  Judson,  Mrs.  Joseph¬ 
ine  W.  Smith,  Charles  E.  Garst,  Mrs.  Carrie 
Loos  Williams,  E.  P.  Hearnden,  Mrs.  E.  P. 
Hearnden,  A.  P.  H.  Saw,  Dr.  Harry  N.  Bid¬ 
dle.  Miss  Robinson  had  been  live  years  in 
India;  had  she  been  less  self-sacrificing  she 
might  be  alive  and  well  to-day.  Miss  Jud¬ 
son  went  to  the  assistance  of  the  workers  in 
Mahoba  in  the  time  of  plague  and  famine, 
and  worked  beyond  her  strength,  took  the 
fever  and  died.  Mrs.  Smith  laid  dcnvn  her 
life  three  years  after  reaching  Japan.  Her 
death  made  a  profound  impression.  C.  E. 
Garst  lived  and  died  as  a  good  soldier  of 
Jesus  Christ.  After  six  years  of  faithful 
and  fruitful  service  Mrs.  Williams  went  to 
her  reward.  E.  P.  Hearnden  was  drowned 
while  crossing  a  stream  on  his  way  home 
after  visiting  some  converts.  His  wife  died 
soon  after  of  a  broken  heart.  While  nursing 
some  famine  refugees  x4.  F.  H.  Saw  con¬ 
tracted  typhus  fever,  from  which  he  never 


11  — 


recovered.  Dr.  Biddle  ex])osed  himself  while 
searching  for  a  suitable  place  to  begin  work 
in  Africa.  On  the  way  home  he  died  and 
was  buried  in  the  Canaries.  Some  mission¬ 
ary  children  should  be  added  to  this  list. 
They  were  dear  to  the  Lord  while  alive,  and 
their  death  was  precious  in  his  sight.  It  is 
by  stepping  over  the  graves  of  its  members 
that  the  Church  advances.  Their  graves 
are  way-marks  for  their  successors  who  will 
march  past  them  with  great  strides.  Of 
those  who  died  at  home  special  mention 
should  be  made  of  Isaac  Errett,  the  peerless 
advocate  of  Foreign  Missions ;  Timothy 
Coop,  the  largest  moneyed  contributor  to 
the  Society;  Joseph  King  and  Thomas  Mun- 
nell,  its  constant  friends  and  champions  ;  A. 
M.  Atkinson,  the  ])ersonal  friend  of  every 
worker  on  the  field;  and  Robert  T.  Mat¬ 
thews,  a  member  of  the  Executive  Commit¬ 
tee  for  ten  years,  and  many  others  whose 
names  are  in  the  Book  of  Life. 

The  Foreign  Society  is  an  international 
organization.  The  churches  and  Sunday- 
schools  of  Canada  have  contributed  regularly 
and  generously  from  the  first.  The  women 
of  Ontario  and  the  Maritime  Provinces  sup¬ 
port  Miss  Rioch  in  Japan.  The  Endeavorers 
of  Ontario  have  paid  for  a  dispensary  in 
China  for  Dr.  Osgood.  England  supports 
Dr.  McGravran  in  India,  and  has  recently 
sent  Miss  Clark  to  be  her  associate,  and  sends 
large  amounts  each  year  for  the  general  work. 
Australia  supports  Miss  Thompson,  F.  E. 
Stubbin,  and  three  native  helpers,  in  India. 
Considerable  money  has  been  sent  to  China 


—  15  — 

from  the  brethren  beneath  the  Southern 
Cross. 

The  income  of  the  Society  for  the  first 
year  amounted  to  $1,706.85;  for  the  past 
year  to  $180,016.16.  The  receipts  year  by 
year  are  as  follows : 

1876  .  $1,706  85 

1877  .  2,174  05 

1878  .  8,766  24 

1879  .  8,287  24 

1880  .  12,144  00 

1881  . 18,178  46 

1882  .  25,068  94 

1883  .  25,004  85 

1884  .  26,601  84 

1885  .  80,260  10 

1886  .  61,787  07 

1887  .  47,757  85 

1888  .  62,767  59 

1889  .  64,810  08 

1890  . 67,750  49 

1891  .  65.865  76 

1892  .  70,820  84 

1893  .  58,855  01 

1894  . 78,258  16 

1895  .  88,514  08 

1896  .  93,867  71 

1897.. .  106,222  10 

1898  .  180,925  70 

1899  .  152,727  88 

1900  .  180,016  16 

There  has  not  only  been  an  increase  in  con¬ 
tributions,  but  in  the  number  of  contribu¬ 
tors.  The  first  year  twenty  churches  re¬ 
sponded  to  the  appeal  for  funds ;  last  year, 
8,067.  Twelve  churches  are  now  supporting 
their  own  missionaries  on  the  field.  The 
Sunday-schools  began  to  give  before  they 
were  asked.  Children’s  Day  originated  in 
the  home  of  J.  H.  Garrison  of  St.  Louis. 


—  1  ( )  — 


It  was  observed  first  in  1881.  Tliat  year 
180  Snnday-scdiools  responded;  last  year, 
8,2(50.  The  Sunday-schools  have  given  from 
the  first  $878,080.04.  The  whole  amount 
received  from  the  first  from  all  sources  is 
$1,472,(508.85.  Of  this  about  $250,000  has 
been  invested  in  j^roperty  on  the  fields.  The 
Society  has  received  $0(5,851.01  from  be- 
cpiests.  The  largest  of  these  were  received 
from  Mrs.  Emily  Tubman,  Abram  Farewell, 
Alliert  Allen,  John  Stark,  Timothy  Coop, 
Asa  Shuler,  J.  D.  Metcalf,  and  Mary  O’Hara. 
The  money  from  this  source  has  been  used  to 
open  new  stations.  The  Society  has  received 
on  the  Annuity  Plan  $02,240.  Most  of  this 
has  been  invested  in  buildings.  It  has  been 
expedient  to  house  the  missionaries,  and  give 
them  schools,  orphanages,  and  hospitals. 
They-will  live  longer  and  do  better  work  be¬ 
cause  of  these  comforts  and  conveniences. 
Besides  it  is  much  cheaper  to  pay  intentst 
than  it  is  to  pay  rent.  At  the  death  of  those 
giving  this  money  it  will  l)elong  to  the 
Society. 

An  examination  of  the  books  shows  that, 
taking  one  year  with  another,  the  ex])ensos 
average  eight  per  cent  of  the  gross  receipts. 
As  money  is  worth  more  on  the  field  than  it 
is  here,  a  dollar  reaches  the  field  for  every 
dollar  given,  after  the  ex])enses  have  l^een 
paid.  It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  it  is 
not  handling  money  that  costs,  but  getting 
money  to  handle.  If  the  money  came  into 
the  treasury  as  it  is  needed,  without  any 
effort  or  exj)enditure  on  the  part  of  the  So¬ 
ciety,  it  could  be  handled  for  less  than  one 


—  17  — 


]:>pr  cent.  As  it  is,  the  Society  must  estab¬ 
lish  agencies ;  it  must  kee])  the  facts  ))ef()re 
the  people  every  month  in  the  year.  It  is 
this  ceaseless  cam])aign  of  education  that 
costs.  There  are  more  than  a  million  people 
to  be  instructed.  If  the  Society  ceased  ad¬ 
vertising  the  recei])ts  would  fall  off  till  they 
would  amount  to  practically  nothing.  Be¬ 
sides,  if  the  income  of  the  Society  were 
doulded,  the  per  cent  of  expense  would  be 
reduced  one-half.  It  is  as  easy  to  handle 
three  thousand  dollars  in  a  year  as  half  that 
sum. 

The  Society  has  had  only  two  presidents. 
Isaac  Errett  served  in  that  capacity  from  the 
organization  of  the  Society  until  his  death. 
Charles  Louis  Loos  succeeded  him  and  still 
holds  the  office.  Among  the  vice-])residents 
who  have  served  longest  have  been  Jacol) 
Burnet,  James  Challen,  A.  I.  Hob})s,  O.  A. 
Bartholomew,  J.  B.  Briney,  Dr.  E.  Williams, 
R.  T.  Mathews,  T.  M.  Worcester,  E.  T.  Will¬ 
iams,  B.  C.  Deweese,  B.  J.  Radford,  C.  J. 
Tanner,  Hugh  McDiarmid,  J.  Z.  Tyler,  L. 
E.  Brown,  J.  A.  Lord,  G.  A.  Miller,  George 
B.  Ranshaw.  Two  men  have  served  as  treas¬ 
urer;  W.  S.  Dickinson  and  F.  M.  Rains. 
The  names  of  the  recording  secretaries  are  as 
follows:  B.  B.  Tyler,  James  Leslie,  S.  M. 
Jefferson,  A.  P.  Cobb,  C.  W.  Talbot,  J.  H. 
Hardin,  P.  T.  Kilgour,  I.  J.  Spencer,  S.  M. 
Cooper.  There  have  been  four  corres])ond- 
ing  secretaries  ;  Robert  Moffett,  W.  T.  Moore, 
W.  B.  Ebbert,  and  the  present  incuml)ent. 
J.  F.  Wright  has  served  as  auditor,  and  Dr. 
P.  T.  Kilgour  as  medical  examiner.  F.  M. 


18  — 


Rains  was  elected  as  financial  secretary  in 
1898.  When  W.  S.  Dickinson  resigned  as 
treasurer’,  Mr.  Rains  was  elected  to  succeed 
him.  His  duties  are  substantially  the  same 
as  they  were  from  the  first.  His  main  work 
is  to  raise  money.  Since  his  election  seven 
years  ago  the  receipts  have  increased  nearly 
threefold. 

The  most  serious  problem  before  the  Soci¬ 
ety  is  that  of  getting  men  to  serve  as  evangel¬ 
ists.  There  is  no  lack  of  qualified  and  con¬ 
secrated  w<uiien  ;  ten  apply  where  one  can  l)e 
sent.  There  is  no  lack  of  medical  mission¬ 
aries  ;  the  Society  can  get  twice  as  many  as 
it  can  use.  The  most  pressing  need  is  that  of 
men  to  preach  the  gospel.  Of  all  the  col¬ 
lege  graduates  of  last  year,  not  one  volun¬ 
teered.  There  is  no  lack  of  men  for  the 
army  and  navy,  or  for  the  civil  service.  For 
every  vacancy  there  are  a  hundred  appli¬ 
cants.  It  is  not  so  with  the  Society.  When 
young  men  who  are  qualified  volunteer,  par¬ 
ents  and  friends  o])pose.  There  is  no  oi)jec- 
tion  when  young  men  offer  to  go  out  and  dig 
for  gold.  When  they  leave  to  serve  in  the 
army  or  navy  they  are  congratulated.  Their 
departure  causes  rejoicing  on  all  sides.  It  is 
hard  enough  to  get  money  for  the  work ;  it  is 
far  harder  to  get  men.  Thus  far  we  never 
had  any  one  to  go  out  at  his  own  charges,  or 
to  be  supported  by  his  family.  Forty  ])er 
cent,  of  the  workers  connected  with  the 
China  Inland  Mission  are  no  charge  on  the 
treasury.  They  are  either  able  to  siq)- 
])ort  themselves,  or  their  families  sup]>ort 
them.  Some  of  these  workers  are  possessed 


—  10  — 


of  siicli  great  wealth  that  they  oot  only  sii])- 
])()rt  themselves,  but  whole  stations.  There 
are  fifty  men  connected  with  the  Churcli  Mis¬ 
sionary  Society  who  are  self-supporting. 
Young  men  and  women  go  out  from  j)alaces 
and  castles,  and  from  homes  of  wealth  and 
culture  and  refinement,  and  give  their  lives 
and  their  fortunes  to  the  Lord’s  work. 

The  confident  expectation  that  the  work  at 
home  would  be  blessed  and  prospered  because 
of  the  efforts  put  forth  to  preach  Christ 
where  He  had  not  been  named  has  been  abun¬ 
dantly  juM-ified.  It  is  not  too  much  to  claim 
that  the  marvelous  advances  made  in  our 
country  in  the  past  few  years  have  been  made 
])ossible,  in  part,  at  least,  by  what  has  l)een 
done  to  carry  the  gospel  to  all  the  ends  of  the 
earth.  Twenty  years  after  the  Society  was 
organized  Robert  Moffett  testified  that  zeal 
for  Foreign  Missions  had  multiplied  zeal  for 
Home  Missions  everywhere.  He  saw  the 
hand  of  God  in  the  organization  of  the 
Foreign  Society.  He  saw  how  it  created 
and  fostered  a  spirit  which  is  indeed  the 
s})irit  of  Christ,  and  which  has  been  a  spirit 
of  life  to  preachers,  Sunday-school  work¬ 
ers,  and  church  workers  generally.  Wherever 
this  broad  missionary  spirit  has  gone, 
and  in  the  ratio  in  which  it  has  been  dom¬ 
inant,  it  has  united  discordant  churches,  it 
has  lifted  mind  and  heart  above  contention 
about  small  things,  it  has  given  new  tone  to 
preaching,  it  has  filled  the  church  with  new 
and  lasting  fragrance,  it  has  organized  work¬ 
ers  and  filled  them  with  hope,  it  has  helped 
in  the  education  of  the  Disciples  of  Christ 


into  Christ] ikeness.  The  Lord  has  l)een  with 
the  Socdety,  and  the  Foreign  Society  has  been 
a  benediction  to  all  those  who  have  ])rayed 
and  toiled  for  its  success. 

The  outlook  for  the  Society  was  never  be¬ 
fore  so  ludght.  There  are  signs  of  hope  and 
promise  all  around  the  sky.  Sentiment  has 
been  revolutionized.  The  churches  are  com¬ 
ing  to  feel  that  they  are  called  upon  to  walk 
with  God  and  to  work  with  Him  in  His 
mighty  plan  of  redeeming  the  world,  the 
work  for  which  Christ  died  and  for  which  the 
ages  wait.  They  are  coming  to  feel  that  this 
is  their  great  work,  their  first  concern, .their 
supreme  business.  They  are  coming  to  feel 
thatit  is  a  joy  and  an  honor  to  aid  this  divine 
enterjudse  of  world-wide  evangelization,  and 
so  to  keep  step  with  the  march  of  the  Omnip¬ 
otent.  As  has  been  said,  it  is  coming  to  be 
regarded  as  an  indisputal)le  fact  that  though 
a  church  may  be  weak  it  must  on  no  account 
suspend  its  missionary  duties,  that  this,  in 
fact,  is  the  circulation  of  its  life-blood,  which 
would  lose  its  vital  power  if  it  never  flowed 
to  the  extremities  but  curdled  at  the  heart. 
Individuals  are  giving  on  a  larger  scale. 
Lathrop  Cooley,  a  pioneer  preacher,  ])ro])oses 
to  give  $25,000  to  plant  missions  so  that  the 
sun  Avill  never  set  upon  them.  Another, 
who  does  not  wish  his  name  known,  gives 
$15,000.  Others  give  less,  but  make  sacri¬ 
fices  quite  as  great  as  these.  Our  colleges 
are  aglow  with  the  missionary  spirit.  Young 
men  and  young  women  are  ))eing  trained  for 
the  service.  The  press  gives  generous  s])ace 
and  al)le  advocacy  to  this  cause.  The  Bethany 


21  — 


C.  E.  Reading  Course  has  prepared  three  mis¬ 
sionary  text-books  as  a  part  of  its  contribution 
to  bless  the  chnrclies  and  the  world.  Tlie  Stu- 
.  dent  Missionary  Campaign  Library  is  l3roiight 
within  the  reach  of  all.  There  is  an  increas¬ 
ing  number  who  propose  to  give  themselves 
and  their  substance  to  this  work,  till  He 
conies  Whose  right  it  is  to  reign  and  take 
unto  Himself  His  great  power,  and  rule 
King  of  kings,  as  well  as  King  of  saints. 
There  can  be  no  doubt  as  to  the  final  issue. 
Sultan  and  Empress  may  oppose,  converts 
may  be  slain  liy  the  thousands,  churches  and 
schools  and  hosjiitals  may  be  looted  and 
hred.  Now,  as  of  old,  the  blood  of  the  mar¬ 
tyrs  is  the  seed  of  the  Church.  The  banners 
of  God  never  go  down  in  defeat,  and  those 
who  walk  and  work  with  Him  are  certain  of 
victory. 

The  Lord  has  done  great  things  for  us,  for 
which  we  are  glad.  He  has  multiplied  and 
prospered  us  in  the  proportion  in  which  we 
have  sought  to  do  His  will.  He  has  strength¬ 
ened  our  faith  when  it  was  weak  and  faint 
and  ready  to  perish.  By  every  token  of 
His  goodness  and  love  He  calls  upon  us  to 
enlarge  our  hearts  and  our  efforts.  More 
workers  should  be  employed.  Larger  offer¬ 
ings  should  be  made.  The  whole  body  of  be¬ 
lievers  should  be  enlisted.  At  the  present 
time  not  more  than  one-half  the  churches, 
and  not  more  than  one-third  the  member¬ 
ship,  are  doing  anything.  Of  the  churches 
that  do  help,  there  is  scarcely  (3ne  that  could 
not  easily  double  its  contribution  if  all  the 
members  gave  half  as  much  as  they  were 


—  22  — 


al^le  to  give.  Many  churches  could  give  ten 
times  as  much  as  they  have  ever  given,  and 
not  feel  it,  except  in  the  added  blessings 
that  come  to  them.  Before  the  Golden  Ju- 
bilee  of  this  Society  comes  round  the  re¬ 
ceipts  should  amount  to  a  million  dollars  a 
year.  We  are  able  to  give  that  much  now, 
and  twice  that  amount  for  the  work  at  home, 
and  to  every  other  good  cause  among  us  in 
like  measure.  We  are  a  great  people.  We 
are  growing  at  an  unprecedented  rate.  Our 
.wealth  is  well-nigh  illimitable.  There  is 
scarcely  anything  that  we  cannot  do  if  we 
will  all  give  and  do  with  all  our  hearts  and 
souls.  If  we  will  resolve  in  the  fear  of  God  to 
do  this,  we  shall  most  worthily  celebrate  our 
Twenty-fifth  Anniversary  and  do  most  to 
please  and  honor  Him  whose  we  are  and  whom 
we  serve. 


[Five  cents  a  copy.J 


